The so-called APS films (Advanced Photographic System) which appeared in recent years, are distinguished, among other things, in that the storage and processing (with the exception of the developing) of the films always takes place in or out of the APS film cartridges especially constructed therefor, which means the films are not completely removed from the cartridges for the processing (again with exception of the developing) and after the processing rewound into the cartridge. Adjustable codings are further provided on the cartridges by way of which it can be determined whether an unexposed, a partially exposed, a completely exposed, or an already developed film is in the cartridge.
So-called minilabs or photographic copier apparatus which, apart from the actual copier part (exposure apparatus, printer), also include a developing section for the photographic copy material as well as possibly also a film developing section. Minilabs and other photographic copier apparatus are generally equipped with a so-called film platform which allows a precise feeding of the films to be copied into the exposure light path.
With minilabs for conventional films, for example, those of the 135 format, a film to be copied is manually or by way of a suited loading arrangement fed into the film platform and thereby passed onto the film transport means provided in the film platform. Those then transport the film along a film path and position the individual picture frames in the exposure window of the film platform where the exposure takes place. When the last picture frame is copied, the film is generally ejected from the film platform.
Minilabs adapted for the processing of APS films, because of the above-mentioned characteristics of such films, require a specially adapted film platform or loading arrangement for APS films. That is generally provided with a holding device for the positioning of an individual APS film cartridge in a defined orientation, as well as an unwind and windup mechanism which guides the APS film out of the cartridge and passes it to the film transport means of the film platform and rewinds the film after the copying process back into the cartridge. Subsequently, the cartridge can then be removed again from the loading arrangement.
Minilabs cover a capacity of up to 100 copy orders (individual films) per hour.
However, even at a lower capacity of, for example, 40 copy orders per hour, this means that the operator must install and remove an APS cartridge about every one and a half minutes. Thus, in order to be able to fully utilize the capacity of the minilab, the operator must practically continuously stand at the minilab.